Month: March 2012

“Spring is in the air and the countdown to the cricket season is well and truly underway with preparations on and off the field gaining momentum. With that in mind I’d like to keep you fully abreast of club goings on with the March edition of the Southgate Bugle.

In the nets both the junior and senior sections of the club have been well represented in recent weeks, well done to all and welcome to those new members who’ve been coming along. I sincerely hope this will transcend into excellent availability and performances throughout the summer. On Saturday 24th the first of a series of Saturday training sessions will take place with a net practice at Lord’s followed by circuit of fitness and fielding drills on Regent’s Park. It’s vital that all players at every level do their absolute best to be ready for what is a very important season throughout our club. I’m told the harder you work the luckier you get! …

With the inconvenience of Christmas and New Year out of the way the countdown to cricket can now begin. 2012 is an important year for Southgate Cricket Club at all levels and solid preparation on and off the field will be key to it being a successful one.

There has been a lot going on over recent weeks at the club and the monthly ‘Winter Bugle’ will aim to provide a monthly round up for members leading into the start of the season when the weekly roundup of match reports, dodgy banter and the odd photo will again be landing in your inbox on a Thursday or Friday. If you’d like to contribute to this or any aspect of the club the door is open.

Ricky Gunn has been slaving away over the past few months to produce a magnificent review of the 2011 season at SCC. The opening from this mammoth forty-three page document is included below, whilst you can download the entire review in pdf format by clicking the link to the right. Included are reports from all the captains, final league tables, comprehensive statistical analyses for every team, and much, much more. Enjoy.

The First XI headed Division 2 for the entire length of the season and triumphantly got promoted to the Premier Division for 2012. Evidence of a stable team was that only 20 players were used all season, of whom seven played three or fewer games. As ever, the secret was not so much in being able to score runs but to bowl out oppositions in a half-day game on pitches made for batting and protected in advance from the elements. Matt Creese was the principal “fixer” taking 35 wickets and scoring 510 runs, but there was no respite afforded to the opposition as Tuan Hadgie, Faisal Mir, “Chatty” Kumara and David Woffinden continued the offensive. Significantly again, only eight bowlers were used during the entire campaign and one of those only bowled two overs. On top of the league distinction, the side was awarded the divisional Fair Play award. – Ricky Gunn